Increasing the Importance of Sleep Education in College Students
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California State University, Monterey Bay Digital Commons @ CSUMB Capstone Projects and Master's Theses Capstone Projects and Master's Theses 5-2021 Increasing the Importance of Sleep Education in College Students Mireya Ysena Cortez California State University, Monterey Bay Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.csumb.edu/caps_thes_all Part of the Business Commons, Education Commons, and the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Cortez, Mireya Ysena, "Increasing the Importance of Sleep Education in College Students" (2021). Capstone Projects and Master's Theses. 1028. https://digitalcommons.csumb.edu/caps_thes_all/1028 This Capstone Project (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by the Capstone Projects and Master's Theses at Digital Commons @ CSUMB. It has been accepted for inclusion in Capstone Projects and Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ CSUMB. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Running head: INCREASING COLLEGE STUDENTS AWARENESS SLEEP Increasing College Students’ Awareness of the Risks of Insufficient Sleep Mireya Y. Cortez A Capstone project of the Bachelor of Arts in Human Development and Family Studies INCREASING COLLEGE STUDENTS’ AWARENESS OF SLEEP 2 Increasing College Students’ Awareness of the Risks of Insufficient Sleep Introduction Many college students are unaware of the effects of poor sleep and sleep deprivation on their overall wellbeing. When students do not get sufficient or quality sleep it impairs their brain development, increases negative feelings, and decreases their alertness. College students are particularly vulnerable to poor sleep habits primarily because they have adopted the culture of college life. College students do not realize that consuming energy drinks and caffeine to stay awake or to manage stress is risky to their health. Furthermore, the use of technology and social media overload before bed makes falling asleep more difficult. To address students' lack of awareness, I have created a one-day sleep education power point presentation workshop for college students at California State University Monterey. Need Statement Many college students are unaware of the consequences of poor sleep habits and the impact of sleep deprivation on their psychological processes. Research indicates that 60% of students state that their quality of sleep is poor (Kloss et al., 2016). Many college students are not well versed on the importance of maintaining good sleep hygiene. For decades, the culture of college students has been to participate in “pulling all nighters.” This theme has contributed to the prevalence and acceptance of staying awake throughout the entire night to study or socialize. Hershner and Chervin explained that the average sleep duration of college students was 5.7 hours a day, and only 4 % of students slept the recommended 7 hours per night (2014). College students continue to practice poor sleep habits to stay awake and fall asleep. Students would benefit from knowing the risks associated with the use of technology before bed , INCREASING COLLEGE STUDENTS’ AWARENESS OF SLEEP 3 and the consumption of coffee and energy drinks later in the day to stay awake. In addition, the effects of alcohol during social activities or as sleep aides need to be addressed. By not practicing good sleep habits, college students are at risk of poor sleep, which in turn has detrimental effects on their academic performance and alertness. 65% of adults 19-29 years old use technology before bed. The use of cell phones, gaming, T.V, and computers are the leading forms of technology platforms that affect sleep in students, resulting in poor sleep habits (Hershner & Chervin, 2014). Technology stimulates the brain and increases alertness making it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep . The consumption of energy drinks and caffeine to stay awake is very alarming and quite the college student repertoire as well. Consuming 2-4 cups of coffee per day impairs the body to wind down and the ability to fall asleep (Hershner & Chervin, 2014). Energy drinks used to stay awake or to compensate for insufficient sleep, ranked the highest in usage at 67% among college students . The use of alcohol consumption is also popular amongst college students whether students are drinking at social gatherings or using alcohol to relax after a long day of school or work. Hershner & Chervin, discuss that 11.6% of students have used alcohol as a sleep aid. The same report states that alcohol can increase the time someone actually falls asleep and even more alarming is the fact that it causes other health issues (2014). The American College of Health Association ranks sleep problems second , behind stress, resulting in lower GPAs among college students (Chen, W.-L., & Chen, J.-H, 2019). Lack of sleep or sleep deprivation creates cognitive function issues in learning and memory which affects students’ academic performance . Memory is highly dependent on how much rapid eye movement sleep is acquired. Rapid eye movement (REM) is considered slow-wave-sleep and is key to memory formation. When students stay up late, there is a sleep reduction compromising INCREASING COLLEGE STUDENTS’ AWARENESS OF SLEEP 4 their cognition, alertness, and they are less likely to learn new material (Chen, W.-L., & Chen, J.-H, 2019). Since the stress of learning and coursework is very demanding during this stage of life , poor sleep quantity makes students feel fatigued and likely to get behind in their studies. Unable to realize the severity in their poor sleep habits result in college students more at risk of failing. In one study, students are described as being exhausted and accumulating excessive delinquency and falling asleep in class affecting their GPA (Chen, W.-L., & Chen, J.-H, 2019). Heavy course loads, loud music, and the increased amount of alcohol consumed at parties or during socialization affect students dramatically in the decision making process; as a result of these poor decisions, they experience difficulty in their daily overall capabilities. I In addition, consequences of poor sleep practices can lead to issues of depression and suicidal ideation. When these mood changes occur, students are less likely to be productive in their academic achievements. Having depressive symptoms or feeling sad is one of the most common mental health issues amongst college students, and it is linked to insufficient sleep. According to (Hershner & Chervin, 2014), 14.8% students felt greater depressive symptoms as they lost more sleep. With sleep deprivation, students begin to feel a loss of pleasure, and develop a sense of guilt . Further, having an irregular sleep schedule increases the risk of students' negative moods and disliking themselves; this accounted for 11% of suicidal ideation (Hershner & Chervin, 2014). Research supports that college students' sleep habits negatively affect their sleep. Implementing awareness on proper sleep practices will change students’ sleep hygiene, therefore, making them more knowledgeable in practicing sufficient strategies on ways to get a better night's rest. In order to raise the importance of sleep awareness and increase healthy sleep INCREASING COLLEGE STUDENTS’ AWARENESS OF SLEEP 5 regimes in college students, I intend to provide a one day interactive power point presentation at CSUMB on healthy sleep hygiene practices to improve overall sleep habits for college students. Theory Jeffrey Jensen Arnett describes “emerging adulthood” as the in-between stage from adolescence to adulthood from the ages of 18 to 25 years old (2000). Most college students fit in this age bracket and exhibit the developmental traits as the ones described in Arnett’s theory of taking responsibility for oneself and making independent decisions, and most importantly, becoming financially independent. Arnett’s research also describes emerging adults as seeking to engage in various identity explorations through love, work, and world views. Jeffrey Arnett states that during emerging adulthood acquiring an education is their main goal, while postponing a family, and enjoying life seem to be the most important during this identity seeking stage (2000). Emerging adults consider world views very important, especially when re-examining beliefs and values they have learned from their family. Working, for example, helps them reflect on what is important in adulthood and attaining adult status. However, the new transition from dependence to responsibility includes worrying about what job field would seem to suit them best (Peltz et al., 2016).. Finding love during emerging adulthood includes a more serious relationship and physical intimacy. This gives emerging adults a deeper feeling of closeness which assists them in the kind of life partner they would enjoy being with now, and in the future (Arnett, 2000). I feel that in order to reach academic achievements and become financially independent, students must learn to accept responsibility for making healthy decisions while still finding their identity. Sleep knowledge could assist college students in taking responsibility for making sleep one of their top priorities. INCREASING COLLEGE STUDENTS’ AWARENESS OF SLEEP 6 This theory applies to my project because college students usually are around the age of 18-25 years old. In an environment that entails a high degree of diversity and instability, the opportunity for social interaction interferes with their sleep and they don’t develop